Letting Go
by SparksJSH
Summary: Sometimes saying goodbye is the hardest thing to do.


Letting Go

_**Disclaimer: ** Saban owns the Rangers. Unfortunately the nation owns the problem presented in this story. Anybody you don't recognize from the show are figments of my imagination and any resemblance to people living or dead is purely coincidental. ****_

Author's note: I watched the coverage of the Littleton shootings in horror and my heart went out to the people affected by the shooting. From the horror of watching what was going on, this story was born. This story is dedicated to the victims and their families. It is my hope and prayer that this is the last time we have to mourn the innocent victims in this growing epidemic of school violence. ****

Timeline: This story takes place before Zordon gives Jason, Trini, Billy, Zack, and Kim their power coins, approximately eleven months before they meet Tommy. 

### Letting Go  
by: Jennifer Hart

"Uh oh, major nerd alert coming our way. Quick, everyone run." 

Kim Hart looked up from where she had been dressing her burger. She frowned at her fellow cheerleader's description of the two young men walking toward her. "Marta, don't talk about Billy and Dannon that way. They're really nice guys and are two of my oldest and best friends." 

A couple of the cheerleaders rolled their eyes. Marta frowned. "Kim, you are a cheerleader. Cheerleaders don't hang out with nerds or jock wannabes. We hang out with football players and basketball players and occasionally even baseball players. We don't have anything to do with brainiacs and people whose idea of sports are martial arts." 

Now it was Kim's turn to roll her eyes. "I hang out with my friends and I don't choose my friends based solely on what they are into in school and out. I've found that it's easier to meet people and have friends that way. Anything else is so limiting." 

"Hey, Kimberly." Billy Cranston paused at her table to greet his friend. Behind him stood a tall, good-looking boy with green eyes. 

Kim smiled. "Billy, Dannon, pull up a chair and join us. Could you believe that history test? I took one look at it and my mind went blank. Then I read the first question and it all started coming back to me. Dannon, I'm in your eternal debt. If you hadn't helped me study, I wouldn't have had a chance." 

The two boys sat across from the pink clad, perky cheerleader. Dannon Sanders, dressed in a green button down shirt and khaki pants, blushed and smiled. "Anytime Kimbo. You would have gotten it on your own though." 

"Not as easily." 

The other cheerleaders at the table abruptly stood and left the table. Billy watched them leave and shook his head. "Would I be correct to presume they did not find us suitable dinner companions?" 

"'Fraid so, Billy. They don't know what they are missing. After all, here I am having lunch with two of the cutest guys in Angel Grove. Don't let them bug you." 

"Besides that, Billy, it may not have even been us. They probably had to go refuel or something. How long can a person go on a tank of air for a brain?" 

Kim laughed but then quickly composed herself and gave him a mock glare. "Be nice, Dannon. They can't help it if they aren't as bright as the two of you. After all, nobody is that smart." 

Billy laughed and took a bite of his sandwich. Once he swallowed, he shook his head. "Kim, even you have to admit most of them are shallow and stuck up as well airheads." 

"I could but that would mean sinking to their level. Most of them are really nice once you get past their way of judging and stereotyping people." 

"That's what I like about you, Kim. You can find something good about everyone." 

Reaching over to steal a French fry from Kim's tray, Billy pointed to where three guys dressed all in black were giving a group of students a hard time. "Sorry to disagree with you, Dannon, but I bet even Kim couldn't find anything good to say about them." 

Kim wrinkled her nose as she regarded the three boys. Most of the student body was scared of them. It was rumored the three of them were into devil worshipping and sacrifices but nobody had any prove. "I'm sure they have some good qualities. Maybe they are nice to cats or are kind to little old ladies. I don't know; they are bound to do something nice every now and then. I bet they just dress like that and act like that for attention." 

Dannon laughed and almost spewed his milk across the table. "You were saying, Billy? Only you, Kimbo, only you. You know there is such a thing as being too nice, you know." 

"Who's too nice?" A broad-shouldered, muscular boy in a red T-shirt sat beside Kim. With him were a handsome African American boy and a pretty Asian girl who took seats at the table. 

"Kim. Never a negative word about anyone, that's our Kimbo." Dannon winked at her. 

Kim blushed. "You guys make me sound like some kind of Pollyanna. I'm not. I just don't see what good it does to put people down. There's too much of that junk going around anyway." 

Dannon nudged her leg with his foot and waited until she smiled. "Sorry, Kimbo, I wasn't trying to pick on you. I wish I could be more like you. I like the fact you can see the good in people. I just wish there were more people like you, myself included." 

Trini grinned and hugged her friend. "We all do." 

"Hey guys, not to change the subject but are all of you going to the organizational meeting for the Brainiac Olympics this afternoon? Mr. Kaplan caught me in the hallway and asked me to spread the word." 

Zack grinned. "I'm there, Jase. The six of us are going to be a team, right? Together we'll be unbeatable." 

**** 

"Hey, Kimbo. Ready for the meeting?" Dannon stopped at Kim's locker. She put her notebook inside and closed the door. She smiled and leaned against the metal lockers. 

"Yeah. You are going to think I'm a complete dummy but do you think you could help me with those chemistry problems. I know Mr. Ross went over them a gazillion times in class but I still don't get it." 

Dannon laughed and put an arm around her shoulders and steered her toward the library. "I don't think you are a dummy and yes, I think I can arrange things so that I can help you. It might cost you though." 

"Oh really? Well, in that case, name you price; you're worth it." A movement down the hall caught her eye. She frowned. Andy, Kurt, and Scott were the last three students she would have expected to stay after school for the meeting. She thought about the three boys who always wore black clothes and occasionally even black eyeliner. Though she had meant what she had said earlier about being sure they had some good qualities, she had yet to see them or even have a clue what they might be. 

"What's wrong, Kimbo?" 

Deciding she must be imagining things, Kim shook her head. "Nothing, Dannon. Come on, I bet Jason and the others are waiting." 

Approximately thirty kids mingled around the library. The two friends quickly spotted Jason and Billy at one of the tables and joined them. "Hey, guys, where's Trini and Zack?" 

Jason grinned. "They had an idea for an obstacle course and took Mr. Kaplan out to show him. You know the two of them; they love to come up with off-the-wall courses." 

Dannon looked around the library. "What an eclectic group of students we have here. Jocks, cheerleaders, brains, wannabes; that's why I love the Brainiac Olympics. What else would draw us all together?" 

Kim punched him good-naturedly. "You are just as bad as they are about judging people." 

He laughed and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Yeah, but you love me anyway, right?"  
Jason and Billy exchanged a look. They had noticed what appeared to be a growing attraction between the two friends, though Kim and Dannon hadn't recognized it yet. The two boys had discussed it with Zack and Trini and all four of them agreed the two made a cute couple. 

"Sometimes, Dannon, only sometimes. What are you two laughing at, anyway, Jason Lee Scott?" 

Jason shook his head, laughing. "Nothing." Then he frowned. "What are those clowns doing here?" 

Kim and Dannon looked back toward the door where Kurt, Andy, and Scott had entered wearing long dark trench coats. Everyone looked surprised to see the school outcasts walk in. A hush fell over the room as everyone turned to stare at them. 

"What are _you_ doing here?" The question came from a knot of cheerleaders in the center of the room. Kim thought the voice was Marta's but couldn't be sure. 

"Don't worry. We aren't staying long. We are here to tell you all that we find you guilty. Prepare to receive sentencing." Kurt had one hand inside his coat as if he was holding something. 

Jason didn't like the way this was looking. "Guilty of what? What's going on here?" 

Scott pulled out a sawed off shotgun and fired a round into the ceiling. Several girls screamed. Dannon held Kim protectively closer. 

"Guilty of everything." His face was twisted with anger and hate. "I want the cheerleaders up here right now." 

No one moved as the other two boys drew weapons as well. Kim knew if she did as they said, they would probably shoot her but also knew they were liable to shoot everyone if she didn't. Dannon, Jason, and Billy tried to pull her back as she took a step forward. The rest of the cheerleaders were shrinking into the background, hoping to avoid being seen. 

Andy shook his head as Kim stepped out into the open. "Are you brave or stupid?" 

"Just scared. I don't want to see anyone get hurt. Don't do this, please." 

"So polite. Don't worry, if you don't want to see anyone get hurt, we can arrange that. We'll make sure you die first." 

Tears spilled over Kim's cheeks. Her heart was beating wildly. She couldn't see her friends behind her but she could imagine the look of fear on their faces. 

"Where are your cheerleading friends? It looks like they've deserted you." 

"Can you blame them? You've got guns and are talking about killing people. Most people would be scared to join me. Please put the guns away and don't hurt anyone. Please." 

Kim knew all three had their guns trained on her. She closed her eyes tightly and said a silent prayer. A moan started deep in her stomach as they cocked the guns with an audible click in the quiet room. Time slowed to a stop as the first gun was fired. Kim felt herself being pushed sideways. A sharp fiery pain creased her side but she ignored it when she saw the horror being played out in front of her. Dannon was now standing where she had been before he had pushed her aside. She screamed as multiple shots struck him in the chest. 

For the rest of her life the shocked and pained expression on his face would forever be etched in her memory. As soon as he hit the ground, Kim threw herself over him shielding him with her body. She could feel the sticky wetness of blood soaking through her pink tank top. All around the library she heard people screaming and guns blasting. 

"Kimbo?" In the midst of all the other noise in the room, Dannon's voice could scarcely be heard. But Kim blocked out everything else and concentrated solely on him. 

"Shh," she whispered. "Save your strength. You shouldn't have done that; pushing me away." 

"Couldn't let them hurt you. You okay?" 

Kim blinked back the tears. "Yeah, it's you I'm worried about." 

The gunfire ended and Kurt shouted something at them but Kim ignored him. She lifted her head enough to see Dannon's face. His face was the same shade of white as the tile floor and it was obvious that he was rapidly losing both strength and consciousness. 

He grimaced. "I'm sorry, Kimbo." 

Kim sniffed. "You have nothing to apologize for, Dannon." She pulled him up in her lap, supporting his head in the crook of her arm. 

"Yes, I do. Should have told you sooner. I love you." 

Her body shook with silent sobs. She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. "I love you too, Dannon, but don't talk like it's too late. We have plenty of time." 

"Dannon! Kim!" Billy and Jason knelt beside the young couple. 

"Bill man, guess you win the race for valedictorian. Don't let me down." 

Tears welled up behind Billy's glasses. It didn't take much to see that their friend wasn't going to make it. "You can count on me." 

"Kim, don't change. The world needs more Pollyanna's like you. Promise me." 

"I won't. You'll see. Dannon, don't talk anymore. Save your strength." 

Billy put an arm around her shoulders and looked at Jason. Both boys knew that Dannon wouldn't live long enough to save any strength. They also realized Kim either couldn't see how bad off he was or was too much in shock for it to register. 

Dannon moved only his eyes to look at Jason. "Give Trini and Zack my love. Take care of Kimbo for me. She's going to need you." 

Jason's jaw quivered with emotion. "Got it covered, Bro." 

Groaning once more in pain, Dannon's body then went slack as the last of life left his body. Kim continued to hold him close. Her head resting on his forehead, she seemed completely unaware that he was gone. Billy held her close, tears streaming down his face. 

Jason allowed himself just a minute to grieve and then touched Billy's arm. Kurt, Scott, and Andy had left the library to chase down the students who had fled as soon as they had opened fire. But they had no way of knowing if or when they would return. 

"We have to get out of here." 

"You heard what Kurt said before he left. They've booby-trapped the school. If we trip one, a bomb could go off." 

"We have to take that chance. I haven't heard anything." As if to taunt the teens, there was a sudden explosion somewhere down the hall. Jason frowned. "Okay, I think we can get in the air vent and crawl down to one of the other classrooms. We can at least barricade ourselves in until the police get the situation under control. Besides, we've got to get Kim out of here. She looked like she's almost catatonic as it is." 

Billy nodded, seeing the wisdom in this. He touched Kim's cheek. "Come on, Kim, let's get out of here before Kurt and the others come back." 

"We can't move Dannon. We could hurt him worse if we do." 

Jason took her face in his hands. "He's gone, Kim. There's nothing we can do for him. We have to get out of here. He wouldn't want us to risk our lives like this." 

Kim shook her head, her eyes devoid of the emotion that radiated in her voice and body. "No, he can't be" 

Knowing they wouldn't be able to convince her, Jason eased Dannon's lifeless body from her arms to the floor. At the same time, Billy pulled the distraught girl to her feet. He practically had to carry her to the wall where the vent was. Jason jumped up on a table and popped open the vent. He could hear Kurt screaming down the hall and knew they had to hurry. 

***** 

"Everybody stay behind the line." A SWAT officer warned the people who gathered around the school entrance after hearing about what happened. Zack Taylor held Trini as they watched the police scurry about. They had been on their way back inside with Mr. Kaplan when they had heard the shots. Worried about their friends, they had been ready to rush in to help but the principal had stopped them before they could. 

Suddenly, a group of student poured off out of the school. Trini recognized one of the girls as a cheerleader on the same squad as Kimberly. She grabbed her arm as she passed. "Marta, what happened in there?" 

The usually perky cheerleader was pale and trembling. "Those psychos Kurt, Andy, and Scott started blasting up the place. They killed Kimberly, I'm sure of it. She was my best friend." She left them when a SWAT officer led her to a secure place to question her. 

Zack had to keep Trini from falling once she heard the news about Kim. He couldn't believe it and told her so. "Kim's fine; I know it, Trini. Dannon, Billy, and Jason wouldn't let anything happen to her." 

"Why didn't they come out then?"  
"Maybe they couldn't get out. But they will. Come on, I hate not being able to do something. Let's walk around and see if we can sneak in and help get them out." 

Trini nodded. Anything was better than just standing there waiting on word about their friends. "Let's go." 

****** 

Jason dropped lightly to the ground. He looked around the chemistry lab. Satisfied it was safe; he gave Billy the all clear. He frowned when neither he nor Kimberly appeared in the hatchway. "Billy?" 

"Just a minute, Jase." Billy called down and then looked back at Kimberly. He had had to practically push her along the shaft as Jason led the way. Now she was sitting beside him staring off into space. Even in the dim light, he could tell how pale she had grown. She was obviously in shock. "Come on, Kim. Let me help you down. Jason will catch you." 

"We shouldn't have left him." It was the first thing she had said since they left the library. 

"We didn't have a choice, Kim. Come on. Small jump just like the dismount from the uneven bars." 

He put his hands on her tiny waist and gave her a little push toward the opening. He didn't miss the look of pain that crossed her face. As Jason reached up to help her down, Billy looked down at his hand, which was now covered in fresh blood. He frowned. 

He jumped down and joined Jason and Kim on the floor. He led Kim to a chair and forced her to sit. He raised her blood soaked shirt enough to reveal a heavily bleeding wound. "Kim, you were shot. Why didn't you tell us?"  
Kim looked up at him blankly. "I was?" She vaguely remembered the stinging pain she had felt a split second before Dannon was shot. Once that had happened, she had pushed everything else out of her mind. 

"Looks like it grazed your side, but there's so much blood. I can't tell you how much of this blood in yours and how much was." He stopped without finishing his sentence when he saw the misery that crept into her face. 

Jason maneuvered a cabinet in front of the door to keep Kurt, Andy, and Scott out. He turned to check on them. "Geesh, Kim." Jason winced as he saw the wound. "Billy?" 

The smaller boy dressed in blue was busy tearing a lab apron into straps and rummaging through the teacher's desk for tape. "There's not much I can do but I'll try to bandage it as best as I can. Check to see what's going on out there in the hallway." 

Kim winced slightly as Billy held pressure over the wound and covered it with some of the strips from the apron. She looked at the rest of the apron. "You should take that back down to the library and take care of Dannon. Don't worry about me; help him." 

Billy placed one more strip of tape over the makeshift bandage and then turned away. A couple more tears squeezed past his tightly shut eyes. She still hadn't accepted the fact that their friend was dead. After a second he joined Jason by the door. 

"Jase, we have to get her out of here." 

"How is she?" He glanced at their small friend in concern before searching Billy's face for the truth. 

Billy sighed. "I'm not a doctor, Jason but we both knew she was losing it before we even noticed the wound. I had chalked it up to psychological shock which is bad but not really life threatening. But now, I don't know. I don't think the wound is that bad but I can't tell how much blood she's lost. Her skin is cool and clammy; she's withdrawn herself from the reality of the situation, and that's just the signs I can recognize. She's going into severe physiological shock." 

Jason looked around. "I'm still hearing gunfire in the hallway. We can't get out that way. If we use the air vent, we may get lost not to mention that crawling wouldn't be good for Kim anyway." 

"So that just leaves the window." 

"Billy, in case you've forgotten, we are on the second floor. It's at least a twenty-foot drop. If we jump, we will break our legs if not our necks." 

"What if we tied the lab aprons together to make a rope to lower ourselves down. I know it's not a great idea but it may be our only option." 

Jason considered the possibilities and then nodded. "Let's do it." 

The two boys set to work gathering the aprons. As he set to tying them together, Billy kept an eye on Kim. She was trembling slightly due most likely to the rapid blood loss and shock. Picking up Mr. Ross' lab coat, he carried it to her and wrapped it around her thin shoulders. 

Her eyes had gotten more vacant and Billy was afraid they were going to lose her as well. He couldn't sit there and watch another friend die today. "Kim, talk to us." 

She didn't answer him but did pull the coat closer around her. Jason gave her a worried glance and then nodded to Billy. "Okay, we have a long enough rope. You go first, Billy. You are lighter than me." 

"Kim's the lightest." 

Jason nodded. "Yeah, but someone's going to have to be on the ground to help her. I'd go first but if the rope is going to break, it's going to break under my weight. If that's going to happen, I'd rather the two of you be already on the ground safe than still stuck up here." 

"Don't talk about it breaking. With everything that's happened, something has to go right. Okay, let's secure the rope and I'll go." 

They tied one end of the rope to a heavy table against the window and the other end around Billy's waist. Just before Billy eased out the window, Jason clutched his arm. "Good luck, Bro. See you on the ground." 

"You too, Jase. Be careful." 

Jason kept a grip on the secured end of the makeshift rope and fed the rope and the window as Billy slowly descended. He held his breath until Billy was on the ground. The blue clad teen looked up and gave Jason a thumb's up before untying the rope. 

Jason smiled and turned back to Kim. He knelt in front of her. "Okay, Kim, it's your turn. I'm going to lower you down to the ground and Billy will be waiting for you there. Okay?" 

She shook her head. Jason caressed her cheek. "We can't stay here. You're injured; we've got to get you to the hospital. Come on, Kimbo." 

"Don't call me that." She swatted his hand away. She obviously lacked the strength to do much but the intensity of her words and actions startled Jason. "We left him, Jason. Dannon wouldn't have done that to one of us. He's our friend, Jason. He saved my life and we left him. I hate you for that. I hate myself for that." 

Jason ducked his head. He knew it was the shock and grief that prompted her words but he had to agree with her. He hated himself for not being able to do more. "Fine, you can hate me all you want but I made a promise to Dannon that I would take care of you and I'm going to do just that. Come on." 

He picked her up bodily and carried her to the window. Setting her on the table, Jason leaned out the window and pulled the rope back in. He tied it securely and tightly around her torso. Kim wouldn't look at him as he worked. 

Satisfied she was secured well enough to be safely lowered; Jason forced her to look him in the eye. "Kim, I wish like anything that I had some sort of superhero power that I could have used to stop what happened, but I don't. There was nothing I could do to save Dannon, but I can save us. I hope you'll realize that when this is all over. Now, I'm going to lower you down. Hold on tight." 

Without another word, he eased her over the edge and began to slowly lower her. 

***** 

Billy held his breath as Kim appeared over the window edge. So intent was he on her descent that he didn't hear his name being called at first. When someone touched his arm, he almost instinctively attacked but then noticed it was Zack. Trini was with him. 

Trini hugged her friend tightly; relieved to see he was all right. She was glad she and Zack had come around to the back of the building to look for a way in to the school. "Are you okay?"  
"I'm fine, Trini. Kim's hurt though." He pointed up to where she was being lowered. She was halfway to the ground. "Can you go get the paramedics around here. We probably shouldn't move her anymore than necessary." 

Trini nodded and took off running. Zack and Billy took hold of Kim as soon as she came close enough, and eased her the rest of the way down to the ground. Her eyes were half closed and her face was grayish pale. Zack looked at Kim and then at Billy as the other boy undid the rope to send it back up to Jason. 

"Billy? What happened? Marta told us Kurt, Andy and Scott." 

"Yeah, later Zack. I'll tell you everything later. Help me keep an eye on Jason. I don't know if this rope is going to hold up for one more person or not." 

Zack frowned. "One more person? What about Dannon? Wasn't he with you?" 

Billy looked down at Kim, his eyes dark with grief. "Dannon didn't." 

"We left him behind. He was shot saving my life and we left him in the library." 

Zack looked at Billy strangely. Billy shook his head. "There was nothing we could do. He was gone before we decided to leave out." 

"Here comes Jason. What did you guys use for a rope?" He couldn't believe that one of their friends was dead and was glad to have a practical problem to deal with. 

"Lab aprons. Easy, Jason, easy." 

It looked like he was going to make it but just past the halfway point, the knot in the top two aprons came loose and Jason started falling faster. Billy and Zack raced to try to break his fall but in the end, Jason still landed on his side. He immediately grabbed his shoulder and moaned in pain. 

"My shoulder, I think I dislocated it." 

Zack knelt beside him; he knew from experience how painful such an injury could be. "Take it easy, Man. Trini went to get the paramedics." 

Just then, Trini came back around the corner followed by several SWAT officers and a squad of stretcher bearing paramedics. Two medics went to Jason to check out his shoulder. Two more medics went to Kim. One whistled at the amount of blood that had drenched her tank top and the lab coat Billy had put around her. 

"It's not all her blood." Billy informed him. The medic nodded as he removed the makeshift bandage Billy had covered the wound with. Another medic cut away the lab coat to start an IV in her arm. 

An officer took hold of Billy's arm to pull him aside to question him. Billy wanted to protest but seeing that Kimberly was in good hands, he allowed himself to be led away. The officer led him a couple of feet away but Billy still kept his eye on his friends. 

"Son, can you tell me what happened?" 

Billy nodded and told him everything that had happened from the time Kurt, Andy, and Scott had entered the library to their escape from the chemistry lab. As he talked the magnitude of the terror and fear he had experienced that afternoon washed over him. By the time he had finished, he was shaking and felt as wrung out as Kim and Jason looked. 

"Thank you, son; you've been a big help. The medics look like they are ready to transport your friends. We may need to question you later but for now go with the ambulance." 

"Thanks. Have you caught them yet?" 

"We're close. We don't want to rush things without knowing if they have any hostages. Go on, looks like the girl really needs to get to the hospital." 

***** 

"It's over." Trini announced, handing Billy a steaming cup of coffee. "Kurt, Scott, and Andy were apprehended about ten minutes ago. They were taken without injury." 

Billy accepted the cup but didn't drink any. "What's the final count?" 

"Three dead and I think Kim and Jase made ten injured. Any word on how they are?"  
"Jason will be out in a moment. They relocated his shoulder and put it in a sling. He's being questioned right now. They took Kim to surgery a few minutes ago where they could close the wound in her side. They are also giving her blood. The doctor thinks she's going to be fine, physically at least. I don't know how any of us will recover emotionally from this." 

"Billy, Trini." A near hysterical female voice turned their attention down the hallway. Billy dropped his head when he was it was Mrs. Sanders, Dannon's mother. He hoped someone had already told her; he didn't think he could handle being the one to tell her Dannon was dead. Looking back up at her though, he knew by the expression on her face that she knew. 

She hugged him and Trini tightly. Tears fell down her cheeks. "I went to the school and on of the officers told me what happened. I just can't believe it. Dannon was so." She cut herself off with a sob but then composed herself. "How's Kim? I was told she was shot as well." 

Billy repeated what he had told Trini and then added, "She was having trouble accepting what happened. I don't know if you know this but the two of them getting close."  
"Of course I knew it, Billy. I kept telling Dannon that he should tell her how he felt. Don't worry about Kim. She's going to be okay. We'll all see to that, won't we? I want to stay to see her but I really need to get home. Will you tell her I was here and that I'll check on her later?" 

Trini promised and Mrs. Sanders turned to leave. Jason and Zack emerged from one exam room and she stopped long enough to hug them both. 

***** 

Five days later, Jason knocked on Kim's front door. As he waited for someone to answer he looked back at his three friends. They were all worried about Kim. She had refused visitors while in the hospital. She had been released yesterday and they were hoping that now that she was home she would agree to see them. 

Mrs. Hart opened the door and smiled at them. "I am so glad to see you. Whether Kim wants to admit it or not, she needs her friends more than ever right now." 

"How is she?" Trini asked putting a comforting arm around the woman's shoulders. 

"Physically, she's a lot better. Sore and a little weak but the doctor told us to expect that. But emotionally I don't know. She's not sleeping; she's barely eating; she's barely said more than a dozen words since she came out of surgery. I don't know what to do." 

"Dannon's funeral is this afternoon. I know she's still weak but we thought she'd probably want to go. We'll keep and eye on her and bring her straight home." 

"Billy, that's so sweet of you guys but I was planning on taking her myself. No parent should make a child attend a friend's funeral alone. I think she needs to go but she told me this morning she doesn't want to." 

Zack frowned. "That doesn't sound like Kim. She and Dannon were so close. Can we talk to her?" 

"Please do. She's in her room. I know she'll regret it forever if she doesn't go but I can't force her." 

The four teens made their way down the hallway. Trini entered the room first to make sure Kim was decent and then motioned the others in. Kim looked up when they entered but snuggled down under the covers and returned to staring out the window. 

Jason sat down next to her on the bed and the others gathered close around her. "How are you feeling, Kim?" 

She shrugged but said nothing. Her expression was blank and they couldn't tell if she was just traumatized by what had happened or if she still blamed them for not being able to help their friend. Trini sat down on the other side of the bed and took Kim's hand in her own. 

"Kim, please don't shut us out. We are burying a real good friend this afternoon but it's starting to feel like we lost you too. I know you're hurting but so are we. We can get through this together, by leaning on each other and helping on another. Please Kim, let us help." 

A couple of fat tears ran down her cheeks and her lower lip quivered. "I don't want to get through this. I want to go back to before this all started and stop it from ever happening." 

Zack shook his head. "We all do, Kim. Man, so many times since that day, I've wondered if things would have been different if Trini and I hadn't taken Mr. Kaplan outside to show him our idea for the obstacle course. Maybe our being there wouldn't have stopped what happened but at lease we would have been able to say goodbye to Dannon. You three got that chance." 

Kim wrapped her arms around her chest and sniffled. "I didn't tell him goodbye. Dannon knew he was going to die; Jason and Billy both knew it too, but I refused to see it. He died in my arms and still I couldn't see it. It was easier to be mad at Billy and Jason for leaving him behind than admit he was gone." 

Billy squeezed her foot through the covers. "You can tell him goodbye today at the funeral." 

She shook her head. "I'm not going. Don't look at me that way. I can't. Going this afternoon would be admitting he's dead and I can't do that. Besides, I know how people are; the church will be packed with kids and teachers from school saying how much they loved him and admired him but they didn't. We were the only ones who gave him a chance." 

"You're probably right, Kim, but that's why we have to be there. We knew him the best and we'll miss him the most but we have to let him go." 

"I can't, Jason. Don't ask me to. I called his mom this morning and explained to her and she understands. Why can't you?" 

"Because we know you. If you don't go this afternoon, you'll always wish you had. We don't want you to regret this." 

"No, I regret the day Kurt, Andy and Scott came into the library intent on killing everyone. I regret the day they were born and I hope they rot in Hell for what they did." 

The ferocity in her words scared the four other teens. Though they felt pretty much the same way, hearing it from kind, sweet Kim, who believed in the good in everyone, was frightening. Jason wrapped his arms around her tiny shoulders as she began to sob. His own tears fell into her hair. Trini joined the hug as well and soon after, Billy and Zack did too. Violence such as what happened wasn't supposed to happen in such places as Angel Grove. 

They would survive this because as Trini had said they had each other. But what was the price they had to pay for surviving? What would happen to each of them if the price was too much for even one of them to pay? 

**** 

**__**

One year later 

Jason Scott sat on his bed looking at the various newspaper clippings that covered the bedspread. Each article chronicled the events of the shooting ending with the one that reported that the three shooters had been sentenced to twenty-five years in prison. It seemed like such a small price for them to pay for the horror they had wrecked on Angel Grove High School. 

He was dreading school tomorrow, the one year anniversary of his best friend's death. Mr. Kaplan had spread the word that there would be no sort of memorial service. The principal was worried about the psychological effect it would have on the student body. It was probably for the best. For the past week, Jason himself had sensed Kimberly sinking closer and closer to the depression that had surrounded her after the shooting first happened. 

Jason almost jumped when someone knocked on his door. He called for whomever it was to come in. He was only slightly surprised to see Tommy come through the door. "Hey, Bro. What's wrong?"  
"It's Kim. I really thought there might be something there between us but I just came from her house and she wouldn't even talk to me. All week long, she's been pushing me away. I don't know what I did wrong." 

Jason nodded. He had noticed that as she was retreating into herself she was pushing everyone, especially Tommy, away. "You didn't do anything wrong, Tommy. It's not you; it's the time of year. Sit down and I'll explain." 

Tommy sank onto the bed and listened intently as Jason told him about what had happened a year ago. By the time he finished, both boys were crying; Jason out of renewed grief over his friend and Tommy for the pain his friends had experienced. 

"Poor Kim, no wonder she turns the television or runs from the room every time the news runs a story on school violence. Why didn't anyone tell me about this?" 

"We don't talk about it because of Kim. I told you about how depressed she was right after the shooting and about how she wouldn't even go to the funeral. Well, she wouldn't even return to school for about a week after it reopened. The depression continued for over a month. She'd cry at the drop of the hat, she wasn't eating or sleeping, and she wouldn't participate in anything. We were losing her as surely as we had lost Dannon. The only thing that snapped her out of it was that her mom threatened to send her to counseling. She probably should have anyway. Kim wasn't the only one affected though. Billy was almost as bad. He buried himself in books and schoolwork. He became even more of a brain than he already was, closing himself off in his lab and speaking in that famous technospeak we know so well. It was if he had to try even harder that usually to fulfill his promise to Dannon to be valedictorian." 

Jason absently sorted through the clippings until he found one that had a picture of Dannon. He showed it to Tommy. "By the time Zordon gave us our coins, things had returned to some sort of normalcy. We thought nothing of Billy's technospeak even though Trini had to translate most of it. Kim had gotten back to her basic perky self but she's never been the same Pollyanna that she had been before. Our lives went on as if Dannon had never existed." 

He took the clipping back and returned all the articles to the drawer where he kept them. Tommy shook his head still trying to absorb what he had just learned. "He was such a big part of your lives before this happened though. I don't see how all traces of him could have disappeared so completely that I've never heard about him before now." 

"Not a day goes by that I don't think about him. I bet the same is true for the others, especially Kim. But as for talking about him, it just hurts Kim too much. Right after we got our powers, we were in the Youth Center talking. Zack got to thinking and wondered aloud if there would somehow have been a power coin for Dannon if he had still been aloud. Kim's eyes glazed over about like they've been all this week and she ran our. She stayed in her room for two days after that. We made a pact right then never to mention him in front of Kim unless she brought him up first. And to this day she hasn't." 

"Poor Kim. I wish there was something I could do." 

"Just be there for her, Man. Kim's strong; she'll get through tomorrow and then be back to her normal self. Don't expect her at school tomorrow. It's going to be too painful for her." 

"I wish there was more I could do." 

"So do I, Tommy. I promised Dannon that I'd take care of her and there are some days I don't know that I'm doing such a great job of it." 

**** 

"It's so weird. You know everyone was thinking about the shooting all day but nobody mentioned it." Trini took a sip of her Smoothie. 

The team, minus Kim, had gathered at the Youth Center after school. Exactly as Jason had predicted, Kim hadn't showed up at school that day. He had called her house before Homeroom and talked to her mom. Mrs. Hart told him that she was staying home with Kim today but that Kim had closed herself off in her room and wouldn't come out. He was going to get Tommy to go with him in a little while to see her. 

"Mrs. Sanders is here." Zack looked at the doorway startled to see the woman walking into the Youth Center. She had aged considerably since the shooting. She smiled when she saw them. 

"Hey guys." 

Jason stood and hugged her tightly. "It's good to see you again." 

"You too, Jason. You get more and more handsome every day. Billy, do I still need a thesaurus to understand you?"  
The Blue Ranger smiled. "Invariably." 

"Good. Trini and Zack, you both look great as well. I don't believe I know you though." She looked at Tommy. 

"Hi, I'm Tommy Oliver. I just moved her a month ago." 

"Nice to meet you Tommy. I hope you can keep these guys in line." She looked around and then turned back to Jason. "Where's Kim?" 

Trini bit her lip and answered. "Um, she's still having trouble dealing with what happened. I think today was going to be much to painful for her." 

Mrs. Sanders frowned. "I know just how painful today was going to be for her. That's why I was surprised when she called me and asked me to meet her here this afternoon." 

"Hi." 

They turned to see Kim standing there, her guitar case in hand. She was slightly pale and had dark circles under her eyes. She hugged Mrs. Sanders. "Thanks for meeting me here. I know how hard today was for you." 

"As hard as it was for all of you. Are you okay, Kim?" 

"No, but I think I'm going to be. A year ago, I lost more than just a good friend. I had a part of myself torn away; a part that I can never get back." She looked at Tommy. "I'm so sorry for the way I've treated you this week. I hope Jase and the others explained." 

"They did. You don't have to apologize." 

"Yes, I do. I owe all of you an apology. I was so intent on not saying goodbye to Dannon that in the end, I've pushed him out of our circle. I never should have done that. I loved your son, Mrs. Sanders." 

The woman smiled, tears filling her eyes. "I know you did, Kim. He loved you too. I hope you know that." 

"I do; he told me before he. before he died. I wish we had had more time together. I think it's time I told him goodbye; time to let him go. It's the only way I can keep him in my heart." 

"We're here for you, Kim." Jason promised her. 

"Affirmative." Billy agreed. 

Kim smiled, silent tears running down her cheeks. "I know and I love you all for it. But the truth is, it's going to take more than just you guys to get me through this. I've already talked to my mom about this and we both agreed it's time for me to see on of the counselors who were at the school after the shooting." 

Zack smiled. "That's cool, Kim." 

Tommy looked down at the guitar case she was holding. "I didn't know you played the guitar." 

"I haven't played in a while." It didn't take much to come to the conclusion she probably hadn't played since the shooting. "But I woke up this morning and had a song running through my head. So, I've spent all day writing it." 

She bit her lip. "I'd like to play it for all of you." 

Mrs. Sanders smiled and ran her hand through the younger girl's hair. Bright unshed tears filled her eyes. "I for one would love to hear it." 

Kim sat on the steps and pulled out the guitar. She gave it a couple of experimental plucks as her friends settled around him. Taking a deep breath she began to sing. __

"I woke up this morning but I had to wonder why 

For without you near it makes no sense to try. 

To live my life when you're so far away, 

I want you to come back and help me to go on. 

Sometimes when you love someone, you have to let them go, 

Even if it's the hardest thing you'll ever have to do. 

For you'll find that when you love someone enough to let them go; 

They'll find a way to come back and hold you close once more. 

Though goodbye is not a word I ever wanted to hear, 

You said it for me when I didn't know what to say. 

Though you can't be here to hold me when my fears pull me low, 

I've found your love has never let me go. 

Sometimes when you love someone, you have to let them go, 

Even if it's the hardest thing you'll ever have to do. 

For you'll find that when you love someone enough to let them go; 

They'll find a way to come back and hold you close once more. 

No matter how long it's been since you left me here to cry, 

A day, a week, a month, a year, a lifetime's all the same. 

Thank you for the time we had, no matter how short, because of it 

I think I've finally found the strength to say Goodbye. 

Sometimes when you love someone, you have to let them go, 

Even if it's the hardest thing you'll ever have to do. 

For you'll find that when you love someone enough to let them go; 

They'll find a way to come back and hold you close once more. 

I'm glad you've found a way to come back and hold me close once more." 

By the time the last note of the guitar faded into silence, all six teens and Mrs. Sanders were crying. The older woman tried to speak a couple of times but couldn't form words past the lump in her throat. Finally, Tommy spoke for them all. 

"Kim, that was beautiful." 

Kim returned the guitar to its case and wrapped her arms around her legs. "Thanks. Dannon was a good person and a great friend. He never should have died but I never should have kept everyone from talking about him. By not talking about him, we push his memory out of our lives. I don't want that to happen anymore. I need my friends, Dannon included." 

Jason smiled and took her hand in his. A second later, Billy placed his hand on top of theirs. Next came Trini's hand and then Zack's to the pile. Tommy hesitated only briefly before placing his on top. Kim looked up at Mrs. Sanders. "Would you put your hand in for Dannon?" 

The woman's lip quivered with fresh tears. "I'd be honored." Her delicate hand completed the mound of hands. 

"Friends forever?" Trini asked, looking into each person's face. 

"Forever." They all affirmed. Somewhere deep in the center of those hands, year old scars lost their hold on the teens touched by violence. In that moment, the real healing began.   
  


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   [1]: index.html



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